Number IV
by Raberba girl
Summary: They're looking for a heart.
1. Number IV (giftfic for The Layman)

Number IV

(rough draft)

A crossover fanfic by Raberba girl

_For The Layman, with much thanks. You've been shockingly supportive of my work (as well as graciously tolerant of my fangirling and _extremely_ patient in waiting for this fic), and you're the only one of my readers that I know of who follows my fics for both my favorite manga and my favorite fandom. Our conversations are quite refreshing, I appreciate everything so much!_

Summary: They're looking for a heart.

A/N: If you're a Rurouni Kenshin fan, **do not read this fic. That was your warning, so it's your own fault if you ignore the warning and then don't like what you see.**

As far as the timeline - this is a crossover and therefore an AU, so I didn't pay attention to exactly how old the characters are supposed to be or when this is supposed to happen.

o.o.o

_He knew he should be feeling _something_...horror, fear for his loved ones, anger at whatever had caused this, the will to fight - yet he felt nothing. Distant screams echoed in his ears, phantom blood clouded his vision, yet he simply drifted here in the darkness and felt nothing._

_Then, a whisper, as if from within his own mind. "You already have the mark...your heart has long been shrouded in darkness...don't you want to be free?"_

_"..."_

_"Let me in."_

o.o.o.o.o

Sanosuke woke up feeling like he'd punched straight through a multi-layered wall with both his hand and his head. "Ugh..."

He was lying on some sort of pavement. He sat up and found himself somewhere very strange - dark like it was nighttime, though it didn't feel like night, and with lots of tall brick buildings pressed close around. He was in an alley of some kind. He could also see a lot of strange light sin the distance, some even forming words (that he couldn't read) or pictures. "Weird..."

Then he finally remembered what he had awakened from. "Megumi!" Immediately he was on his feet, running. _'I was getting _married_...where did those monsters come from?!'_ Black, shadow-like creatures wriggling up from the ground right in the middle of the ceremony, guests panicking, women screaming, Yahiko fighting at his side...and then a _huge_, fearsome creature, rearing up above it all... Sanosuke, full of rage, had charged it without hesitation; the next thing he had known was pain and horror and darkness and...this place. Where _was_ this place?

He finally stopped running and yelling. People were staring at him. "Where am I?" he shouted at them. "Where's my wife?" The onlookers quickly resumed their business, though someone muttered, "You're in Traverse Town. Wish you luck, sir."

"Traverse Town...?" He finally found some police, and sent them searching for Megumi. He also found a shop during his own search - a _wonderful_ shop, filled with magic goodies that healed you and restored your strength when you were hurt... Sanosuke reluctantly decided he didn't trust the stuff, because he couldn't figure out how they worked, and it seemed too good to be true.

There were other shops he kept finding, though...magic, which he didn't go near; and weapons. Armor. "Aww..." Sanosuke got distracted for the longest time in there, admiring them, then finally figured out that not only was he broke, but even if he wasn't, the currency he was used to was not accepted here, anyway. He also discovered that, A) killing monsters usually resulted in loot, and B) despite all the monsters that kept popping up here, people seemed to regard them as mundane. Even the women and children had weapons; they'd run from the stronger monsters and bash at the weaker ones, which would eventually burst into quickly-dissipating smoke. And leave behind treasure.

"I have 50 'munny' now," Sanosuke mused, inspecting the golden orb he'd just picked up. "So if I collect enough of these, I can buy a weapon, or what...?" He'd need a weapon, in any case. Using his bare hands didn't work well...touching the shadow monsters felt utterly disgusting, and they seemed to respond more to his will to fight than his physical strength, anyway. These battles were different than what he was used to.

"Oi, you guys still haven't found my wife yet?"

"Sir, we've done a thorough search, and it seems very unlikely that the lady is here in this town. At best, she may be in an entirely different world."

"An entirely different _wor_-?!" Sanosuke's eyes narrowed. "And at worst?"

The officer shrugged uneasily. "Well, you know." He glanced over at where a girl in a ninja outfit was happily slicing apart monsters with a pair of giant throwing stars.

"No, I don't know! Spell it out!" The man did, and Sanosuke almost wished he hadn't. "I've gotta find Megumi..."

However, the first one he found was someone else. Dashing through the courtyard of the Second District, Sanosuke was brought up short by the sight of monsters appearing near a group of kids. "Yaaahh!" They started hacking away at the monsters with wooden swords. They seemed to be enjoying themselves, so Sanosuke was about to pass on again, when he suddenly recognized one of the redheads. "Wait a sec-"

"Aaahh!" a boy cried out as he was raked by a monster's claws.

"There are too many of them!" a girl cried. "Run!" Then, when one of the boys was reluctant to follow, "Run, Kenji!"

Sanosuke surged forward and crushed the rest of the monsters, now barely noticing the soul-choking sensation. He scooped up the remaining kid in one arm.

"Hi, Sano. I beat a monster."

"Great job, kid. Where's your dad?"

"I dunno..." The boy shrugged uncomfortably. "Dad fought the big monster and Misao-nee threw me, and I woke up here."

"Looks like we've both got people to find, huh... Come on."

o.o.o.o.o

Roxas quickly tuned out Xemnas's slow ramblings. The newest Organization member was much more interesting - small and slender like Zexion, with red hair like Axel's, gold eyes and pointed ears like Xigbar's, a big X-shaped scar on his face like Saïx, and a bright smile like Demyx's.

"...our new Number IV, Xekshinn," Xemnas finally finished.

Xekshinn smiled straight at Roxas. "Hello."

"Um, hi."

"What's your superpower?" Demyx asked.

"Hmm...this one does not know."

"Let's go do a holo-mission and find out!"

"Hmmm?" Xekshinn murmured, politely disinterested.

"Luxord," said Xemnas, "you will be Number IV's guide during his first week. Teach him what he needs to know to be a productive member of our Organization."

"Yes, sir."

"If there is no other business to discuss, you are all dismissed."

That evening, Roxas went to the kitchen to make dinner and found Xekshinn already there, cooking as if he was a professional. "Whoa..."

The older Nobody turned to him with a smile. "Hello, young one."

"Hi... Man, everyone likes to give me nicknames."

"What is it you wish to be called?"

"My name's Roxas."

"Roxas. It is good to make your acquaintance, that it is."

"You talk kind of funny..."

"Apologies."

"I mean, it's fine, I've just never heard anyone talk like that before. What are you making?"

"Oh, nothing much. Would you like some?"

Roxas was not expecting that. None of the other members (except Axel and Xion, of course) usually offered to share. "Uhh...sure."

"Please wait just a little longer, and then it will be ready, that it will."

"Okay. Can I help?"

"Hmm, well, you may chop the rest of those, if you wish."

Axel and Xion finally RTC'd as they were sitting down to eat, and Xekshinn didn't mind sharing with them, too.

"This is good," Roxas noted. He didn't often eat Japanese food, but he found that he liked it.

"You're a really good cook," Xion said admiringly.

"This one is pleased you like it, little one."

Xion giggled. "He called me 'little one'..."

"Charming guy," Axel remarked in a dry tone. He watched unhappily as the kids seemed to hang on the newest member's every word all throughout dinner. Then, after the Keybearers had gone to bed, Axel went to pay a visit to Vexen's old room (Xion had moved her things to Larxene's). "Oi. Number IV."

"Yes?" Xekshinn said innocently, looking up from the book he was paging through.

Axel wasn't sure how to say it without having the opposite effect of what he wanted. "I noticed you getting pretty friendly with the Keybearers at dinner."

"Keybearers?"

"Those two are special. They can use the Keyblade - a weapon that only a very few in all the worlds are able to wield."

"They're so young..."

"Yeah. Just kids, really; no one pays much attention to them as long as they get their work done."

"This one...used to love children, before..."

They were silent for a moment.

"It's all just _gone_, that it is," Xekshinn murmured thoughtfully. "This one's past...it's as if it happened to a stranger. No more crushing darkness, no more pain...no more joy...there's just-"

"Nothing," Axel finished softly. "A big blank. You're nothing. Nobody."

"Is that better, or worse, this one wonders," Xekshinn murmured.

_'I don't care. Just stay away from my friends.'_ "Who knows. I guess that's what we're trying to find out, rebuilding Kingdom Hearts and all."

"Kingdom Hearts..."

"It's that big heart-shaped moon outside the window."

"Hm."

"Yup. Well, good night."

"Good night."

Axel left, frustrated with himself. _'Stay away from my friends, they're _mine_...'_

o.o.o.o.o

Another one - they'd been having so many attacks lately. Everyone else on the street fled at the sound of the monster's screech, angry about _yet another_ interruption so soon after the last one, but Tomoe paused. It wasn't the usual 'Mwahaha, I will wreak havoc on this city!' screech. The Heartless sounded angry. That was a battle cry, which meant that the creature was battling someone.

_'Enishi will be upset if something happens to me.'_ But she couldn't let her life revolve around her little brother's wishes, so Tomoe tucked her shopping bag securely under one arm and cautiously went to investigate.

He was beautiful. His movements were beautiful as he fought, graceful and unbelievably swift, as if it was a performance. The Heartless didn't have a chance - long before she could get her fill of watching, the monster shrieked out its death-cry and began to fall...straight toward Tomoe. She watched, almost too awed to run, but it didn't matter because it was already breaking apart, landing on her not as a massive body but as a spray of shadows like black blood. In the next moment, even those smoky remains were gone, leaving her shivering at the touch of darkness.

_'I...'_ She felt ashamed as the man approached, he in the perfection of a victorious warrior and she feeling filthy from the darkness, but he did not seem to notice.

Solemnly, he paused before her and offered a Potion. "...Are you hurt?"

"..." She took the bottle from his hand, and drank until she felt cleansed. Then they gazed at each other for a while. _'This feels so familiar,'_ she thought.

"Tomoe," he murmured, and she felt a jolt of surprise.

"How do you-?"

Then he was reaching out, holding her head gently as he kissed her.

_'..._This_ is why I've never been interested in anyone,'_ she thought. _'Because I've always been waiting for him, without even knowing.'_

"Number IV."

They pulled back to look at the man who'd interrupted them. Blonde, with silver earrings, wearing the same black coat as her warrior.

"We need to go."

"Very well." He gave Tomoe one last look and then started to turn away.

"What's your name?" she quickly called after him.

He paused, and smiled. "Kenshin."

_'Kenshin.'_ She tucked the name close to her heart. "I will see you again."

Kenshin glanced at his companion, who shook his head, but Kenshin turned back to her and smiled and said, "Yes."

She smiled back, and walked away. And paused behind the wall, as soon as she was out of sight.

"Perhaps I should have told you this sooner," said the other man, "but we are a secret Organization. You should avoid communicating with or allowing yourself to be seen by the locals."

"I know her," said Kenshin.

Tomoe caught her breath.

"From when you were human?"

_'Human?'_ she thought, startled.

"She was this one's wife, that she was."

_'Wife?!'_

"She was also dead."

Tomoe forgot to breathe for a moment.

"Ah - I have heard of such things. Strange things can happen between the many worlds. This is not the woman you knew, then - or, not exactly. She is a version who never knew you."

"...Our hearts knew each other."

_'Yes. They did,'_ she thought in wonder.

"In any case, it doesn't matter now. You have lost the capacity to love."

"Yes...so you all keep saying..."

Tomoe frowned.

"You did surprisingly well against that Heartless. Have you fought before?"

"This one is accustomed to a life of battles."

"That explains it, then. You are a valuable asset to the Organization. Come - we should RTC." There was a strange whooshing sound, and when Tomoe looked around the corner again, they were gone.

"Hm."

At the house, Enishi nearly collided with her, barreling out the door.

"Enishi!"

"Sis!" He threw his arms around her and squeezed tight. "They said there was another giant Heartless!"

"I'm all right," she said soothingly. "Someone fought the Heartless and destroyed it."

"Good. _I'll_ kill a giant Heartless someday."

"I'm sure you will," she said, kissing his head. "How are our guests?"

"Yahiko's out looking for their friends again. The lady's cooking."

"Do you have homework?"

"Nope."

"Do I need to bother your teacher to double-check?"

"No! I lied! I have homework, I just...need help."

She kissed him again and began to lead him inside. "Show it to me, love."

"Okay."

o.o.o.o.o

Axel missed ice cream again. When Roxas and Xion RTC'd together, they found the new member standing uncertainly in the Grey Area. "Hi, Xekshinn," Xion said, a little timidly. Most of the other members seemed to ignore her or treat her with disdain, but Xekshinn responded with a bright smile.

"Hello, little one."

"How was work?"

"This one was taught to use magic in battle, but...a simple weapon is preferable, that it is."

"I don't like magic, either," Roxas said. "Did you eat dinner yet?"

"Yes. There doesn't seem to be much to do here after missions, other than training, eating, and sleeping."

Roxas and Xion glanced at each other, then smiled to find that they were in agreement, though neither spoke a word. "You wanna hang out with us, Xekshinn?"

"Pardon?"

"Come play with us after we eat."

"All right," Xekshinn said happily.

In Roxas's room later, Axel sulked with a handheld video game as Roxas and Xion eagerly taught Xekshinn how to play Mario Kart. He was apparently from a world where video games didn't exist, because everything was completely new to him, but he seemed amiable and willing to learn.

"Whoo, I won again!" Roxas proclaimed triumphantly.

"But you were really close, Xekshinn," Xion assured him.

"Is that so," Xekshinn laughed. "You two seem to really enjoy this."

"Axel taught us how to play these," Roxas said. "He always beats us unless he lets us win."

"I don't let you win," Axel protested, then, "Oi, watch the hair!" as Roxas playfully smushed his gelled spikes into his face.

"Axel teaches us a lot of things," Xion said affectionately, going over to hug her red-haired friend.

"Yeah, because we're stupid," Roxas pouted. "So he has to teach us everything that everyone else has already known forever."

"Roxas, you're not _stupid_. You've only been alive for a few _months_ - do you know what normal babies are like? They can't even talk or walk, much less destroy Heartless and make grilled cheese sandwiches and play video games. You guys are _geniuses_ for your age. Come on, eventually you _will_ catch up, you just have to keep learning and be patient."

Roxas slumped over and dropped his face on Axel's shoulder. "Bleh."

Axel, still with an arm around Xion, affectionately ruffled Roxas's hair. "For what it's worth, you _do_ act more like a teenager than a baby. And some girls think that cluelessness is cute."

"What do girls have to do with anything?"

Xekshinn chuckled as he watched them. "You three love each other very much, don't you."

The other Nobodies stared at him in surprise. "Love?"

"We're Nobodies," Axel said, uncomfortably trying to pull away from the kids. "We can't love. We can't feel any emotion."

"Why do you all say that?" Xekshinn said curiously. "It's true that at first there was a complete absence of feeling, but that seems to be gradually changing as time passes, that it does."

They went into the usual spiel about Nobodies expressing emotion based on past memories rather than present feeling.

"Is that so..." Xekshinn stood up. "Well, perhaps it would interest you to know that not all of this one's expressions have been feigned. Also - I think that is the case for you three as well."

They stared at him.

He smiled and bowed before turning to leave. "Good night."

o.o.o.o.o

The next day, Roxas was assigned to take Xekshinn on a training mission and teach him about heart collection. "Not that _you_ can actually collect hearts," he clarified as they emerged from the dark corridor. "Only people who have Keyblades can do that. But you should still know how Heartless work and everything." He _loved_ being the teacher for once. It made him feel smart and grown up, especially with a real grown up like Xekshinn hanging on his every word and politely following his lead.

Roxas looked around Beast's Castle, wondering where to begin. "So, first of all, Heartless are the darkness in people's hearts - they actually _do_ have hearts, so I don't know why we call them 'Heartless.'"

"Just as strange as we 'Nobodies' having bodies but no hearts," Xekshinn said with a twinkle in his eyes.

"Uh...yeah. Like that. Just so you know, I'm not the one who came up with those names."

"Of course."

"Okay, so, Heartless are like monsters made from dark hearts, and the Keyblade releases those hearts and makes them clean again. Then they go to Kingdom Hearts."

"Which we are building because its completion will allegedly restore our hearts to us."

"Yeah. And, like, there's two kinds of Heartless, the gross-looking black kinds that I'm not supposed to fight because they're useless, and the weird colorful kinds with the hearts. We're supposed to fight the colorful ones - but if you guys kill them, the hearts just float around and become more Heartless; but if me or Xion kill them with a Keyblade, they go to Kingdom Hearts."

"So what would you like this one to do on heart collection missions?"

"I guess you can fight them, just make sure my Keyblade finishes them off. And if you want experience points and stuff, you can fight the gross Heartless. And I think sometimes other members will fight giant Heartless to wear them down before me or Xion get to them."

"I see."

"Yeah, so...there's not really much for you to do...but you're learning, so that's okay."

Xekshinn's smile was affectionate. "You've learned quite a lot also, haven't you."

"Huh? Yeah, I guess..."

"This one was told that you and the little one were both born a very short time ago."

"I'm 122 days old," Roxas said defensively. "That's a lot of days."

"And you are sure to have many, many more to come. Already I see that you are using them well, that you are. It's more than can be said for many people a hundred times your age, or more."

"...Are you complimenting me or insulting me?"

"Does it matter? You decide on your own self-worth."

Roxas looked thoughtful, and Xekshinn did, too.

"...Okay whatever; we need to get to work now."

It was more fun being partnered with Xekshinn than with most of the other members. The new Number IV was never rude or condescending, he seemed to genuinely like Roxas the way Axel did, and he was an impressive fighter but not a glory hog.

"What does 'Hiten Mitsurugi-ryuu' mean?" Roxas asked.

"Hm?"

"You always yell that before you attack."

"It is this one's sword style, that it is. Each technique was developed by the same man, Hiten Mitsurugi, and passed down from master to apprentice through many generations."

"Ohhh. Cool. How long have you been fighting?"

"This one became an apprentice at age ten."

"Ten days? Wow...I was still kinda a zombie when I was ten..." He frowned as he watched Xekshinn laugh.

"Ten _years_, young one. About 4,000 days."

"_Whoa_! How old are you _now_?!" Roxas cried.

"Hm, this one has lost count..."

Roxas was frozen for a moment, in awe at the thought of being alive for so many days that you couldn't even _count_ them all. "...I really am a baby, aren't I."

"Your youth is quite bothersome to you, isn't it," Xekshinn said compassionately.

"I _hate_ being stupid."

"You remind me of a young man I used to know..."

"A stupid one?" Roxas said sullenly.

"Full of passion, honorable even when forced into a criminal's life, courageous even in the face of terrible odds, a warrior's spirit in a child's body, full of so very much potential and always longing to get stronger, to grow into a man his loved ones can be proud of...you and Yahiko are much alike, young Roxas."

"Huh," Roxas said uncertainly. "Well...come on, let's go see if we missed any Heartless in the West Wing."

o.o.o.o.o

Sanosuke had to keep telling himself that he was married now and probably going to have kids eventually, so this was good practice.

Still, it had been several days now of continuous childcare, and he _still_ wasn't used to being woken up in the mornings by Kenji being obnoxious; having to remember that the kid needed to be fed regularly, before he got hungry enough to snack on junk food (or other people's food); having to remember to be freaked out every time he noticed that it had been too quiet for too long, and wonder where Kenji had run off to this time...

Flirting, apparently, or the little-kid version of it. A girl was in the Second District, about twelve or thirteen years old, wearing a long black coat, leaning down with her hands braced on her knees to talk to Kenji in that delighted way women used when they saw cute things. "...I'm sure you're very brave, but the Heartless are dangerous, okay? You shouldn't try to fight them."

"_You_ were fighting Heartless," Kenji pouted, "and you're a girl."

"Um...yes, but it's my job to fight Heartless, I'm _supposed_ to."

"So am I!"

"What you're supposed to do," Sanosuke interrupted, "is _tell me_ before running off on your own, kid. Your dad'll kill me if I let anything bad happen to you."

"Hi, Sano."

"Hi."

The girl smiled at Sanosuke a little nervously. "Hello... Well, I'm glad that Kenji-chan has someone to look after him."

"Don't call me '-chan'!"

"I'll be going now," she continued.

"Wait a sec- What's all this about it being your 'job' to fight Heartless?"

"Um..."

"A little girl like you? You got a weapon or something?"

"Y-Yes, I do..."

"Well, let's see it," he said, hopeful and suspicious and confused and charmed and annoyed and intrigued all at once.

"I- I'm afraid I...um...goodbye!" She suddenly took off.

"Whoa, wait!" Sanosuke tried to chase after her, but there was a strange whooshing sound after he lost sight of her, and when he turned the corner, she was gone. "Weird..."

"Xion-nee went back in the shadow again," Kenji said unhappily, trotting up beside him.

"Huh?"

Across town, Xion emerged from the dark corridor and breathed out a relieved sigh. "I need to be more careful..." Cute as the little boy had been, she shouldn't even have talked to him, much less his adult guardian. "Okay, focus, Xion. Giant Heartless."

She finally found it in the Third District, in the passageway behind the big neon sign. As soon as she disturbed it, it swooped out into the courtyard, and she had to circle back around to meet it in battle. "I won't lose to the likes of you!"

As giant Heartless battles went, it was not particularly difficult. She dispatched the monster with a decent number of panels left over, and was just going around collecting loot when a voice called out, "Wow, that _is_ impressive."

Xion gave a little shriek of surprise and whirled around. Sanosuke was leaning against the wall, watching her, and Kenji was scampering over to her with a munny orb in his hand like a puppy playing fetch.

"You really do fight Heartless - with a _giant key_?" Sanosuke continued incredulously.

"You scared me," Xion gasped. "Kenji, what are you doing here?"

"Following you. What's your sword style, Xion-nee? I wanna learn it."

"Sword style?"

Sanosuke chuckled, coming over to join them. "People in this town are so weird... Are you even from here, though? You're weirder than anybody else I've seen around this place."

"Uh...I'm from..."

"You should treat us to supper," Kenji said.

"Huh?!"

"I wanna see where you live."

"You can't! Uh- Bye!" Then she made a huge ominous shadow again.

Sanosuke didn't make the decision to jump in after her, it was as if he'd known all along that he was going to do it. What he had to spare a second to think about was that he shouldn't leave Kenji behind in Traverse Town, because there was no telling if Sanosuke would ever be able to get back to fetch him. The dark corridor they found themselves in was horrible, though, and Sanosuke knew he shouldn't have brought the kid here. Either way, this _might_ not have been the best idea.

"I hate it here!" Kenji shouted. "Get me out!"

"C'mon, Kenji, man up."

"Urgh..."

Xion hurried back to them. "What are you guys _doing_ here?!"

"I really hope this isn't where you live."

"Of course it isn't! I..." She looked at Kenji and sighed. "Well, I guess you can't cause much trouble in Twilight Town...come on." She took Kenji's hand and led them to the world that lay on the threshold of two realms.

o.o.o.o.o

Axel was bored, wandering around shooting fireballs at Shadow Globs. Demyx _loved_ these kinds of missions, but honestly, Axel preferred more of a challenge. Nothing challenging enough to make him late for ice cream, but at least something more interesting than mindlessly cleaning up trash, which was what this felt like.

He filled his minimum mission quota. He was too hot and bored to go for a full gauge, so Axel sighed, dusted his hands, and turned away to head for the ice cream shop.

"You missed one."

"Flaming-!" Axel clapped a hand to his chest, as if he'd been startled, and tried to ignore the realization that he truly _was_ startled. _'Xekshinn's a newbie and has no idea what he's talking about. Nobodies don't have feelings.'_

The young woman who had spoken continued to gaze at him seriously. She just looked like a normal Twilight Town resident, but Axel wasn't used to being interrupted by locals during missions.

She raised a finger and pointed. "You're disposing of those shadows, right? There's one up there, near the corner of the building."

"Thanks," Axel muttered. Uneasily, he shot a spell at that one, too, but she showed no reaction to the use of magic. She must have been watching him for a while.

"It should be us thanking you, actually. Those shadows are bothersome, so I'm glad that you've come to help." She cocked her head as if a thought had just occurred to her. "You get rid of them every time, don't you. They don't just disappear on their own."

"You know, it was nice chatting with ya, but I gotta go now."

"Ah, yes, I heard something about how you black coats aren't allowed to interact with those outside your Organization."

"Huh? Have you talked to one of the other guys or something?"

She absently licked her lips. "Yes."

"Heh, someone's gonna get in trouble..."

"I hope not. It's silly to be so unsociable. It seems you have better sense than that."

Axel realized that he was the one now chatting with an outsider, and closed his eyes in exasperation. "You know, when I said I had to go, I really meant it..."

Two boys suddenly rounded the corner, arguing with each other. "You're not even friends, you're just strays that Sis took in because she's way too nice!"

"We didn't _ask_ to be taken in, and if it's such a freaking bother, we'll just _leave_!"

"Get out, then!"

"Fine! I just-!"

They both stopped short when they saw Axel and the girl.

"Hi, Sis."

"Enishi, I've told you not to give our guests a hard time."

"I don't care about _him_," the boy in the yellow kimono sniffed. "We can get out of you guys' hair, it's fine. I just-"

She turned to Axel with an air of dismissing the boys' petty squabble. "My name is Yukishiro Tomoe. This is my younger brother, Enishi, and this is Myôjin Yahiko, who's staying with us for a while. Boys, this is..." She glanced at Axel expectantly.

"I'm not telling you my name, because I have to _go_," Axel said in irritation.

A dark corridor suddenly opened nearby, and Roxas came barging out of it. "Hey, Axel!"

Axel facepalmed.

"Can Xekshinn eat ice cream with us today?"

"No!"

"What? Why not?!"

"Because I'm annoyed!"

"Kenshin!" Yahiko was yelling in shocked delight. "_Kenshin_!"

"Hello, Yahiko."

"Where have you _been_?!"

"Hm, it's a bit difficult to explain, that it is..."

"I'm getting Megumi," Yahiko said happily, hurrying away. Enishi, seeing the way his sister and Xekshinn were gazing at each other, leaned against a wall and sulked.

"It's good to see you again, Kenshin-san," Tomoe murmured.

"This one is glad to see you as well."

"Roxas, why did you bring him here?" Axel demanded. "You should have dropped him off at the castle first."

"There's nothing to do at the castle, he'll be bored."

"That's not our problem!"

Another dark corridor opened, and Xion came hurrying out of it. She wasn't alone, either. "Axel? What are you doing here? I thought you'd be closer to the clock tower."

"I've been _trying_ to head there, but I keep getting interrupted..."

"Kenshin!" Sanosuke yelled.

"Hello, Sano."

Kenji wordlessly hurried over to his father and took his hand.

"Are you all right, Kenji?" Xekshinn asked.

"I'm fine."

"It's good to see you."

Kenji looked at Tomoe. "Who's she?"

"Your Aunt Tomoe we've told you about."

Sanosuke's eyes widened.

"I thought she was dead," Kenji said.

"This one does not understand it very well himself, but it seems she's found some way to return."

Tomoe reached out to gently touch Kenji's hair. "He looks so much like you..."

"Kenji is this one's son. His mother passed away not so long ago."

Her eyes widened. "I'm so sorry."

Xekshinn laid a hand over his own chest and said thoughtfully, "The grief is another thing that has been lost..."

Kenji caught sight of Enishi glaring at them. "Why's Uncle Enishi so short?"

"This is Enishi as a boy. He won't remember you, Kenji," Xekshinn said.

Kenji trotted over to him. "If you're littler, I bet I can beat you now."

"You can't beat me at _anything_," Enishi snapped.

"I bet I can." Kenji pointed at Enishi's skateboard. "What's that?"

"Wow, you're stupid."

"I'm _not_ stupid! Let me ride it!"

"You don't 'ride' it, idiot- Ugh; here, let me show you."

In the meantime, Sanosuke had been demanding, "Kenshin, what _happened_ to you? What's with that coat?"

"It's a long story, that it is..."

"We can talk while we eat," Tomoe suggested. "Why don't we all go to the café over there once Yahiko-kun gets back?"

"Yahiko's here, too?!" Sanosuke exclaimed. "Megumi, what about Megumi? Ken-"

About that moment was when Yahiko came hurrying back with Megumi, and the newlyweds rushed to reunite.

The ten of them spent a long time at the café, talking for quite a while after they'd finished their food. Kenji and Enishi both got bored as soon as the meal was over and went outside to play with Axel, Roxas, and Xion in the plaza.

"...but that doesn't make any _sense_," Sanosuke said.

Xekshinn shrugged. "This one has no other story for you."

"A guy can't lose his heart and then just walk around like nothing happened, it's ridiculous!"

"Yet here we are..."

"What _I_ don't understand is the Yukishiros," Megumi said. "You really are only eighteen?"

"Yes," Tomoe said.

"The real Tomoe would be in her late 30s, at least... And you don't know Kenshin-san?"

Tomoe hesitated. "I...feel as if he's somehow familiar...yet I don't remember ever seeing him before yesterday."

"Hey," said Yahiko. "Let's not get distracted from the actual problem. We're in a completely different _world_. We have to figure out how to get home to Japan."

"And get home in one piece, too," Megumi added. "Kenshin-san..."

"Hm?"

"You said you've been different ever since the attack - you _look_ different, too."

Sanosuke flicked one of Xekshinn's ears, though the Nobody only responded with a placid smile.

"Do you have any idea how we can return you to normal? If you really did lose your heart...is there a way we can return it to you?"

"This condition is not a terrible one," Xekshinn murmured. "This one will be content as long as we all eventually return home."

"Kenshin, your ears are _pointed_," Sanosuke said flatly, "it looks creepy."

"I suppose I'll never see you again if you return to your home world," Tomoe murmured.

Xekshinn gazed at her. "This one does not have to go," he murmured back.

"_What_?!" his friends yelled. "Kenshin, you _have_ to come back to Japan!"

"People need you," Megumi reminded him.

"This one's services are needed here, also. There is great darkness to be fought in this world, and in many others; not only Japan."

"What about Kenji, huh?"

Xekshinn shrugged. "He can choose to return to Japan, if you are willing to raise him, or he can choose to remain in his father's care. This one still seems to retain an attachment to his son, and will meet his needs accordingly."

"Kenshin, this is crazy! You can't just never come home!"

"You really do have no feelings, do you."

"There are a _few_ feelings," Xekshinn said humbly. "And this one does not find the loss to be an unduly terrible thing."

"Kenshiiiiin!"

"Kenshin-san, I know you've had a difficult life," Megumi said, making an effort to gentle her tone. "And I know you'll never stop grieving for Risa-san-" Her eyes widened as she looked at Tomoe, and she added thoughtfully, "...just like you've never stopped grieving for your first wife. But...Kenshin-san...you can't make a decision like this without your- your heart. You _know_ it has to have affected your judgment somehow."

Xekshinn grasped Tomoe's hand under the table and didn't say anything.

Yahiko shook his head. "Okay, two objectives. Find Kenshin's heart, and find out how to get back home. Everyone got it?"

There were various indications of assent.

"Okay, so now - we have two more mouths to feed, and the Yukishiros have already had to put up with us for a while...how are we gonna do this?"

With Tomoe's help, Sanosuke was able to rent an apartment down the hall from hers that afternoon. He, Megumi, Yahiko, and Kenji would live there for as long as they needed to. Xekshinn, of course, would return to the Castle That Never Was. "When this one leaves that Organization, it will have to be for good, that it will."

The next day, Tomoe came home from class to find her brother curled into a corner of the couch, playing video games. He usually only did that when he was upset, so when he didn't return her greeting, she left him alone and went to take a bath.

He was playing in the hallway, right outside the bathroom door, when she came out, though he was still ignoring her. She started dinner and then sat down at her desk in the living room to work on homework as the meal warmed up. Enishi dragged a chair up behind her and sat on it so he could lean against her as he played.

Enough was enough. "Enishi, dear, I can't concentrate on my work unless you use earbuds."

"I don't wanna wear earbuds!" he shouted, breaking his silence at last. "I hate earbuds!"

"Then play in your room."

"No!"

"Then stop playing altogether."

"_No_!"

"I'm about to get angry with you." Although it was true, she also said it because he _hated_ getting on her bad side, and most of the time, the threat was enough to get him to cooperate.

"I hate school," he burst out, pushing aside the game and squeezing his arms around her. "I hate it I hate it I _hate_ it, I hate the other kids and I hate the teachers and I hate _everything_..."

She managed to get her arm free so that she could embrace him. "Dearest, did you try my suggestion?"

"Yes!"

"Did you, really?"

"Gaaaahhh!" He hid his face against her shoulder and was tense and quiet for a long time, which was usually the closest he ever came to crying. Then he finally pulled back and said tightly, "I hate it here. I want to see other worlds and meet _different people_. I don't wanna be _trapped_ here the rest of my life. I'm gonna build a ship some day and get us out of here, but it's _hard_ and it'll take _so long_ and I can't _stand_ it..."

"You make things so difficult for yourself," she murmured sadly, and did her best to comfort him until he got hungry and she could tell his spirits had returned.

o.o.o.o.o

After work, Numbers VIII, XIII, and XIV had to eat their ice cream on the run, because Axel could neither sit on the clock tower alone while he knew his best friends were doing extracurricular activities without him, nor convince them to deny the instincts they'd inherited from Sora.

"Xekshinn is our friend, too."

"Yeah. He's not our BEST friend like you are - but we like him."

"He's nice."

"So if he needs help, we can't just sit here eating ice cream and not help him."

"That would be mean."

"We have to help him."

Axel turned away from their puppy eyes and grumbled, "You two do _not_ play fair."

The trio went with Sanosuke and Yahiko to search for clues in more technologically advanced worlds. Xekshinn himself actually did not join them "He's got a different job," Sanosuke explained. "He has to find his heart."

"So he's out fighting Heartless, then?" Roxas said.

"Huh?"

"The more Heartless we fight," Xion explained, "the more hearts go to Kingdom Hearts. Once Kingdom Hearts is finished, we'll get our hearts back."

Sanosuke and Yahiko looked at each other. "So we should be killing Heartless?!"

"_Someone_ has to figure out how to get home," Yahiko said. "And we can fight Heartless as we go, and kill two birds with one stone."

"Actually," Axel spoke up, "only Heartless defeated by Keyblades count toward Kingdom Hearts."

"Oh yeah," Roxas remembered.

"So what's Xekshinn doing, then?" Xion asked.

"There might be other ways for Nobodies to get their hearts back..."

"One thing we _do_ know is that we're never gonna get home by just standing around talking," Yahiko said meaningfully. "Let's get going."

It took a few days. They tried world after world, sometimes learning useful information and sometimes not. They eventually stumbled into a completely new world, previously undiscovered, which looked promising.

"Flying kids vs. werewolves," Axel remarked in mild interest as they watched. "Looks fun."

"Which ones are the good guys?" Xion asked anxiously, her Keyblade already out.

"Well, that ugly lug's using the six-year-old girl as a hostage," Sanosuke observed, "so I'm gonna put my money on the bird kids."

"Except the six-year-old just took out his eye," Yahiko added. "Some of these worlds are so crazy, I can't take anything at face value anymore..."

They ended up just watching in hiding, taking in who were using dirty tactics, and picking up tidbits from the things the opponents shouted as they fought. It finally ended with the oldest and youngest winged girls being captured and carted off, the blind winged boy unconscious, the oldest boy badly injured and left for dead, the youngest boy falling into a river and being swept downstream, and the remaining girl fleeing as her flock was scattered and accidentally crashing straight into Axel, knocking him out of the tree he'd been crouching in.

"I'll go fetch the Gazzy boy," Xion volunteered, opening a dark corridor.

Roxas handed an Elixir to Yahiko. "Go make that hurt guy drink this. I'm gonna follow the werewolves and see where they're taking those girls."

"Got it."

"Who are you?!" the girl cried hysterically. "Are you from the School?!"

Axel sounded cautious. "Uh...would that be a good thing or a bad thing if I was?"

They eventually managed to regroup, gathering everyone together, reviving or healing as needed, and making introductions.

"What _is_ this stuff?!" Fang exclaimed, turning the empty Elixir bottle over and over in his hands. "A minute ago, I felt like I was dying, now I feel like I could fly halfway around the world in one go."

"Elixirs are really good," Xion said. "No matter how bad you're hurt or how sick you are, they'll make you feel better."

"I _know_ there's a catch somewhere," Sanosuke grumbled.

"I don't care, it tastes _so good_," Gazzy said rapturously.

"Actually," Xion corrected, "yours was just a Potion. You were mostly okay, just coughing a lot."

"A _Potion_?!" Nudge yelped. "Like in fairy tales?!"

"_Who_ did you guys say you were again?" Iggy said suspiciously.

Meanwhile, Roxas emerged from a dark corridor to find himself in a long white hallway with a funny smell, lots of doors, and no windows. All the doors he tried were locked, so he got bored and used his Keyblade on the next one. An alarm sounded when it popped open, so Roxas warily kept his weapon out and entered with caution.

There were a lot of computers inside, and even more cages. Some of the cages were empty, but the others mostly held very strange and very sad-looking creatures. Roxas stared at one for a while, a creature with a dog's face and body, very hairy arms and legs that almost looked human, an alligator's tail, and a pair of large, unkempt wings, one of them strangely twisted and crusted with dried blood. "Um...hi."

The creature licked its lips, still gazing at him with sad, sad eyes.

"Are you in there because you hurt someone, or because someone's hurting you?"

"..."

Roxas finally raised his Keyblade and unlocked the cage.

The creature immediately struggled to its feet and rushed out of the cage - straight at a cluster of computers. It hurled itself at them, knocking many of them to the floor, and started destroying them the best it could with canine teeth and stubby human hands.

Roxas shrugged and began smashing his Keyblade onto the computers as well. The creature yipped in gratitude and turned its attention to the cages. Roxas was about to help with that, too, but shouting people in bulky outfits were now bursting into the room, and he had to fight.

They started shooting at him, and he was surprised to find how much HP each bullet knocked out. Two shots dropped him to a critical level, and he knew a third would finish him off. He healed himself quickly and focused hard on blocking, since it seemed both to be the most effective defense and to take more speed and concentration than usual. He was pleased when one bullet seemed to ricochet straight back at the person who'd fired, injuring him.

"Take him alive!" someone yelled. There was finally a pause in the gunfire, and Roxas seized the opportunity to shoot off a Firaga spell. The explosive result was unexpectedly painful, and he realized that casting a spell like that in close quarters probably had not been a great idea. No matter - the strange creatures had all fled by now, his attackers seemed to have gotten the worst of it, and he renewed his assault with strong physical attacks, trying to beat his way out of the room.

Then he got shot with some sort of weird Sleep spell that only knocked off a couple of HP, but which made him sluggish and sleepy until he finally collapsed. _'These guys don't fight like Heartless at _all_...'_

o.o.o.o.o

The door opened, though this time it wasn't more interrogators. They had another prisoner with them, an unconscious teenage boy in a black coat whom they dragged across the room and shoved into a cage, handcuffing both his hands to the bars. Someone unzipped his coat and shoved up the tank top underneath in order to slap sensors onto his chest. After they'd similarly geared up his head as well, they marched out of the room again without a word to the other prisoners.

Angel chuckled softly. "They're super-mad at him...he wrecked a whole lab, set a lot of experiments loose, and hurt a lot of goons pretty bad."

"Sounds like we just met our new best friend," Max said. "Can you tell if he's a recombinant or anything?"

Angel was quiet a moment as she sifted through the boy's dreams. He shifted in his sleep and mumbled, "At least...tell me...your name..."

"There's something weird about him," Angel said uneasily, "but I can't figure out what."

"Well, can you at least tell if he's evil or not?"

Angel smiled. "He's not really giving off evil vibes, so I hink he's okay."

Then they had to sit around and wait for the boy to wake up. He finally did so with a groan, mumbling that his head hurt, then exclaimed in surprise and dismay when he found that he couldn't move his hands. "What is this?!"

"You're at the School," Max said quickly. "We don't have much time, they'll know you've woken up. Is there any way you can help us escape? What kind of special abilities do you have?"

"Huh?"

"Can you still fight even without your big key?" Angel asked.

"Key?" Max echoed, confused.

The door opened, and the girls groaned in frustration.

"Who unzipped my coat? What are all these wires?" Roxas said, staring down at himself.

The scientist and his bodyguards came to a halt before Roxas's cage. "Subject 1314. Explain yourself and your origins."

"Get these off me," Roxas said, tugging at the handcuffs.

"You are not in a position to make demands. There is currently heated debate about whether to study you further or simply discard you."

Roxas sighed and summoned his Keyblade, which was _really_ awkward to hold under these circumstances, but manageable. His cage filled with sparkling light for a minute, then the handcuffs dropped to the floor. He shifted to his knees and dismissed his weapon so that he could start pulling all the sensors off his body.

"How did you _do_ that?" the scientist was shouting. "Where does that weapon come from and disappear to?!"

"I don't like talking to people who are confusing," Roxas said, "or who hurt me." He smoothed out his tank top, zipped his coat back up, then shocked everyone by disappearing into a black portal that opened out of nowhere and then vanished.

"FIND HIM!"

Even though Angel had been pretty much expecting it, she still gave a startled yelp at the sudden sound of a dark corridor opening right inside her cage.

"You said you wanted to escape, right?" Roxas said.

"Yes!" She wrapped her arms around his neck and let him pull her into the dark.

He dropped her off on the roof, because he figured that someone with wings would like to be close to the sky. Then he went back for the other girl, who shrieked and hit him when he popped into her cage. "Ooww." Roxas rubbed his face resentfully. There wasn't much room, so the two of them were kind of squished together. The mean guy was still yelling, and the others were shooting into the empty cage were Roxas and Angel had been a minute before.

"Where's Angel?!" the girl screamed in his ear.

"_Ow_. I'll take you there if you stop hitting me and yelling at me."

She grabbed him and shook him a little, wincing when her elbow knocked against the side of the cage. "Get us out of here."

Roxas got grazed by a bullet just before they vanished. In the dark corridor, he hissed in pain and irritation, and rummaged around for a Potion he'd picked up during his earlier mission. "Man, I really need to level up."

"Where's Angel?!"

"On the roof. Come on, you'll get sick if you stay in here too long without a coat."

Angel had been smart enough to stay hidden on the roof rather than immediately taking to the air where Itex's surveillance would detect her. She and Max flung their arms around each other, and Roxas tried to wait patiently through their reunion.

"We've got to get back to Fang and the others," Max finally said. "I just wish we had a clue where we are."

"Can't we fly out and find a map in the nearest town?" Angel suggested.

"Yeah." Max turned to Roxas. "Hey."

"Hi."

"I'm Angel," Angel said warmly. "This is my, uh..." She cocked her head and smiled a little. "My best friend, Max."

"Oh - you guys have best friends, too?" said Roxas.

Max gave him a starnge look, unsure how to respond.

"I'm Roxas."

"Thanks for helping us out, Roxas." Max grinned. "Whatever your superpowers are, they sure came in handy back there."

"Those enemies were really strong..."

"Will you come with us?" Angel asked. "Your friends stayed behind to help Gazzy and the others, right?"

"The other flying people? Yeah. I hope everyone stayed together and didn't split up or anyting." Roxas meant to corridor to wherever Axel was, but he was too fascinated by the sight of Max and Angel leaping off the building and spreading their wings to soar like enormous birds. He jumped off the roof and Glided after them.

The girls were amused and curious, circling around to match Roxas's slower pace and watching with interest as he kept gradually losing altitude and had to climb up things in order to get airborne again. Max finally tried hoisting him up very high into the air and dropping him. The higher start point allowed him to go much farther than launching from trees had.

"How do you fly without wings?" she asked.

"I got a Glide panel after my first Neverland mission. When I'm actually _in_ Neverland, I can fly as good as you guys do, but in other worlds I have to keep jumping off things to Glide."

This took a very long expanded explanation that Max thought was ridiculous, except that the awed-looking Angel kept insisting he was telling the truth. "Max! Max! I wanna go to Neverland! I wanna meet Peter Pan and fairies and mermaids!"

"Are you _kidding_? Pirates and crocodiles and monsters? _No_!"

Luckily for everyone, the group left behind after the attack hadn't split up, since Axel and Xion could simply corridor to wherever Roxas was. However, though they ended up at the same facility where Max, Angel, and Roxas had been held prisoner, they were not in the exact same rooms, and therefore completely missed each other. This meant that Roxas and the girls flew all the way to the river only to discover that everyone was gone, and the dark corridor Roxas opened to find them again ended up straight back where they had escaped from. He got yelled at a lot for that, as well as, "Why didn't you TELL me you could have just teleported all this way?!"

In the meantime, while Xion, Sanosuke, Yahiko, and Fang wre fighting Erasers, and Iggy and Gazzy were happily blowing up stuff, Axel was using the myriad distractions to get some research done. Unlike his younger friends, the Japanese warriors, and the bird kids, Number VIII knew how to be stealthy. "Hmm...so, if this machine can open a portal into the reality of any story, and this manga series here really is where Xekshinn & co. came from... Guess I'll corridor it to the castle for safekeeping, then."

o.o.o.o.o

It was hard to call it a 'date' when there was another woman and two energetic young boys tagging along. Still, it felt like one, being here in Disney Town on a beautiful day with Xekshinn. Whenever Enishi wasn't looking, Tomoe reached to hold Xekshinn's hand, and he always smiled and maintained the connection.

"I bet I can beat you at Rumble Racing," Enishi bragged to Xekshinn.

"Is that so?" the Nobody said politely.

"Enishi," Tomoe admonished, "don't force him into something he doesn't care to do."

"This one won't mind," Xekshinn reassured her. "This place seems to be designed for recreation, that it does. If Enishi is entertianed, this one will participate."

"All right. Just don't let him push you around."

Xekshinn, having never driven a vehicle in his life before, lost the first race miserably, though he didn't seem to mind at all. Kenji had gotten excited watching the race and wanted to join in the next round, and it didn't take much urging for both women to join them as well. Though Xekshinn seemed to have quickly gotten the hang of it, he had no competitive spirit; in the end, Enishi let his sister place first, Megumi rather gleefully came in third, and Xekshinn let his wildly whooping son place fourth.

"That was actually somewhat enjoyable," Xekshinn mused to himself, watching the first three winners receive their awards.

Kenji tugged at his sleeve, apparently seeming to enjoy having a Nobody for a father more than when Xekshinn had been human. "Again, Dad, again!"

Fruitball was even better, since Enishi had an absolute blast hurling things as hard as he could at Xekshinn. Megumi soon got ticked off at his attitude and started targeting him with vicious accuracy.

"Ahahaha...this game seems to be rather therapeutic," Xekshinn remarked to Tomoe near the center line as they looked at Enishi and Megumi's mini-war.

"Kenshin-san, I'm about to shove this apple pie into your face. Please be more menacing so I won't feel like a bully."

They were all covered with an _absolute mess_ of fruit pulp afterward and had to shower, even though they'd been wearing protective coverings over their clothes. Tomoe, who was not usually too concerned with her looks, experienced the worst worry about the state of her hair than she ever had in her life. Xekshinn, however, met her outside with a bright smile, and even stole a kiss while Megumi was slathering more sunscreen over the whining boys. Tomoe forgot about her hair.

Making their own ice cream was fun, too, though the boys got messy again and then finished eating much more quickly than the others. Megumi rolled her eyes at their rowdinesss and took them off to the Rumble Racing track again, leaving Xekshinn and Tomoe to finish their ice cream alone.

Their fingers were entwined again without them even pausing to consider first. Tomoe finished eating and tried to just wait, but then Xekshinn squeezed her hand and she couldn't help leaning over to kiss him, the two of them luxuriating in the absence of hostile eyes and in the taste of sugar.

Their lips finally drew apart, and he rested his forehead against hers. She closed her eyes, taking in his familiar scent. "I know you," she murmured. "I only met you a short time ago, yet I feel like I've known you in my dreams my entire life..."

"You were what kept me sane," he whispered. "All those nights full of blood and death, yet the scent of hakubaikô always cleared the haze from my mind..." He suddenly pulled away, a pained look crossing his face.

"Kenshin-san...I feel bad," she said, even as his words made her wonder. "You are supposed to be looking for your heart, are you not? Yet here you are with us..." She _loved_ spending time with him, but it wasn't right to keep him from his real work.

"Tomoe," he said softly, so that she met his eyes again, "this one _does_ seek his heart. It seems to be within reach again, here with you."

She smiled, tears pricking her eyes. She couldn't speak, but she hoped he still knew what joy it brought her to hear him say that.

Yet he seemed now to be drawing away, tucking his hands in close to himself, dropping his eyes, his expression now more distressed than at peace.

"What's wrong?"

"Tomoe...living here in these other worlds, you don't know the things about me that you did when you were my wife."

She waited, bracing herself.

"Watching me come in night after night to wash the blood off these hands..."

"Tell me," she said quietly.

He did so, speaking for a long time in a low, even tone. She listened without a word. Then they were silent for a while, letting his blood-soaked past lie between them.

Finally she said, "Do they know? Your friends Sagara-san and her husband, and Myôjin-san?"

"Yes...it was all told to them a few years ago."

She smiled a little. Seeing that, he felt his heart rise, and knew that it was a lie that he had truly lost it. "They couldn't stop gushing about you. Every day, yet more stories about all the lives you've saved, all the people you've helped; your compassion even for those who called themselves your enemies. They even did tell me about the blood, just a little." She reached out to touch the hilt of his sword, sliding her fingers partway down the sheath. "I can still love such a man: one who, even with such a past, would wield a sword like this."

"Tomoe..."

It was a while before they headed back, looking for Megumi and the boys again. Twilight was falling, and it would be good to be able to see the evening light show together.

At first, they thought the screams were just from people on the rides. But less than a second later, Xekshinn recognized them as screams of terror, not enjoyment, and he broke into a run. His inhuman speed took him nearly to the next area in a flash, and then he remembered that he could get there even faster through a dark corridor. He was already too far away for Tomoe to see the portal swallow him up.

Having fallen behind, she ran also, frustration coursing through her at the slowness of her pace compared to his. Something terrible was happening, and if her brother got hurt, or Kenji or Megumi... _'Please be safe. Please, please save them, Kenshin-san.'_

o.o.o.o.o

The boys were actually rather delighted, even _after_ they realized the monster was real and not some kind of show.

"Heartless! Heartless!" Kenji crowed, waving his shinai.

"Let me go, woman!" Enishi yelled at Megumi. "I can take him!"

"Get _back_ here, both of you," Megumi hissed, hauling backwards. "That thing is enormous!"

"Die, demon, die!" Kenji shouted. "Hiten Mitsurugi-ryuu-!"

"RYUU TSUI SEN!" All three of them froze in momentary awe when they saw Xekshinn crashing out of nowhere, slashing his sword across the entire Heartless and leaving a spray of shadows in his wake.

"DAD YOU'RE AWESOME!" Kenji screamed.

Xekshinn actually stumbled just a little, unaccustomed to being praised by his son; then, back to business, he whirled to face his opponent. "Holding back is pointless against a non-human enemy," he said grimly, flipping the edge of his blade. Even if the creture before him was the darkness of a human heart, defeating it did not mean a death. He could fight without restraint. ...Honestly, it was a bit exilarating. "Hiten Mitsurugi-ryuu: Ryuu Sou Sen!"

He was winning. The Heartless was strong, but Xekshinn's HP had not yet dropped to a critical level. It seemed like half the park had gathered to cheer him on as if it was a performance - which made him a bit worried about their safety, but it would be all right if he could end this quickly enough. Two more strikes ought to do it-

The Heartless had figured out how to fight dirty at this point. Sensing that its end was near, it aimed its next attack, not at its opponent, but at the crowd of NPCs.

As if in slow motion, Xekshinn watched the dark missle heading straight for his child, his friend, the woman he loved and her brother. There was no way they'd be able to evade the blast in time. Repelling it would only send it hurtling into a different set of bystanders. His only hope was to intercept it and counter its force as best he could.

Xekshinn was already in the line of fire; he had no time to cry out an attack name. He simply threw all his strength into an opposing blow, all his power as an inhuman creature who was never meant to exist.

Tomoe and Megumi both screamed when they saw Xekshinn engulfed by what looked like a black and purple explosion. Enishi flung himself over his sister to shield her, and Kenji shrieked in pain as shredded remnants from the attack swept over them, seeming to singe their flesh and dusting them with shadows like blood.

"Kenji!" Megumi shouted desperately, reaching for him.

Xekshinn, having come to this world for recreation reather than work, had almost no panels, and he eschewed magic even when he was prepared. All he had was the ever-present sword in his hand, and with no way to heal and a warning blaring in his ears, he knew he was near death.

No matter. His dear ones were battered but alive, and one advantage of his transformed body was that he processed physical damage so differently. He could fight with no hindrance of pain until he literally dropped to zero. _'End this now. As long as it can no longer hurt anyone, it doesn't matter what happens to me.'_ Xekshinn ignored the persistent warning and threw himself at the monster.

The mechanics of combat were different here. It managed to block the first blow in his combo and then counterattacked. Xekshinn had so little health left, that was all it took. His body dissipated in midair, leaivng only an empty black coat to fall at Kenji's feet. "Dad," he said blankly. He crouched down and gently touched one of the silver drawstrings, as Megumi shouted and Tomoe sobbed behind him.

"RAAAGGGHHH!" Enishi, alight with fierce joy at the thought of being able to fight for real, and simultaneously full of helpless terror at the sight of his sister's grief, was brought up short _yet again_. "LET ME GO!" he screamed at the punk who held him.

"Are you crazy?" Kiyosato Akira snapped. "If you're gonna fight a giant Heartless that even a guy like _him_ couldn't kill, at least don't be an idiot about it." He shoved a Bueno Volcano at the boy.

Enishi's eyes lit up. "_Yes_!" He swallowed it in two gulps and burst into flame.

Kenji hurried over and demanded, "Me too."

"Kenji!" Megumi shouted after him.

From the back of the ice cream shop, Huey emerged, carrying a stack of tiny bowls, and blinked at the scene in confusion.

Akira smiled. "Plucky kid. Eat this and you'll burn everything you touch, so be careful, okay?"

"Okay." Now also wreathed in flames, Kenji ran to grab the Heartless's massive ankle, and hung on for dear life. It shuddered and roared, but he refused to be dislodged until the Command Style wore off. _'It's okay that you can't fight anymore, Dad. Me and Enishi will finish it for you.'_

"You _are_ gonna pay for all that ice cream, right?" Huey said meaningfully as Akira snatched yet another dessert off the counter.

"This is an emergency!" Akira said indignantly, gesturing at the Heartless.

Huey waved his wing dismissively. "Heartless, Schmeartless; we got a business to run here!"

Akira rolled his eyes and downed the Double Crunch as quickly as he could.

"Huey," Dewey hissed, "some guy was fighting the Heartless and lost. Just let people take the ice cream."

"Oh."

As soon as the crystal wing blades burst from Akira's back in a blaze of light, he seized two of them and rushed into battle.

On the roof above Pete's Rec Room, Saïx stood and watched. Number IV's presence in this world had been puzzling, and he would have been reprimanded for associating so closely with humans if he hadn't been stupid enough to get killed first. _'Lord Xemnas will be displeased. It's difficult enough to recruit Nobodies strong enough to suit our Organization, and when they keep letting themselves be eliminated...'_

He sighed. Xemnas would be informed later. At present, there was work to do. The Heartless was still rampaging through Disney Town, and though several humans were now assaulting it, it was clear they wouldn't last long, even though the monster had little health left. "Waste of effort. I need a Keybearer." He would have to keep an eye on this world and assign one of them here when the giant Heartless respawned. "Hah!"

Easy enough to leap down and catch the Heartless with a deathblow as he landed. The monster gave one last massive shudder and dissolved into shadow, much as Xekshinn had earlier.

Ragged cheers broke out from what remained of the crowd. Saïx, having no wish to be mobbed by grateful citizenry again, was keen to leave at once, but he had to retrieve Xekshinn's coat first.

Megumi went weak with relief when she saw Kenji trotting back toward her. "Kenji!" she cried gladly, running to meet him. Then, "Kenji!" again, more distressed this time, since the boy was injured. And once more, "_Kenji_!" in a full-blown rage, and he flinched in both pain and apprehension as she snatched him into a furious embrace.

"We're okay, Megumi, we killed the monster..." A nice cow lady came and gave him a Hi-Potion, and he didn't hurt anymore after he drank it, but Megumi was still yelling at him and then she was crying. He remembered what had happened to his dad, and now it was his heart that hurt. "Now my mom _and_ my dad are gone...you have to take care of me, Megumi. Okay? I'll try not to make you mad."

She just hugged him again and kept crying.

Akira saw a woman kneeling, clutching the coat of the man who'd died protecting them all, and his triumph faded to sadness. He made his way over to her and said hesitantly, "He...was extraordinarily brave."

"I'll never see him again..."

Not sure what else to do, he sat down near her to silently keep her company.

Enishi crept up, having been given a Hi-Potion by Clarabelle as well. "Sis..." He sat beside her and rested his chin on her shoulder, longing to be praised but still intimidated by her grief. "I helped kill the Heartless."

"Oh, Enishi..." She put an arm around him and held him close. He closed his eyes - it would have to do for now, until she was happy again.

A minute later, Saïx came marching up with no warning and reached to yank the coat out of Tomoe's hands.

"No!" She clenched her fingers tighter around the thick fabric.

"This belongs to us."

"Get away from my sister!"

Saïx batted away the enraged boy, though it took more than the minimal effort he expected. Then he also had to fight off the other young man standing guard over her. Why were these humans making such a fuss?

"You can't take it," Tomoe insisted when he seized the coat again, though this time, she was unable to withstand his superior strength. The coat was torn out of her hands. "No! Please! It's all I have left of him!"

"That which was destroyed was merely a shell." Saïx opened a corridor and turned away. "You can only have him if his other half is also destroyed."

"Please wait!"

The portal closed, leaving the place where Saïx had been standing empty. "His...other half...?"

o.o.o.o.o

It was a depressed group who met up again that night. Axel, knowing there was nothing they could do to help, somberly led Roxas and Xion away to RTC. "Xekshinn's room's gonna be empty tonight," Xion said unhappily.

Roxas also looked glum. "His room was already empty. Like he knew he wasn't gonna be there long."

Axel _hated_ having to see their sad faces. "Come on, I'm gonna teach you how to make apple pie."

"Does apple pie make you feel better?"

"Well...it doesn't make you feel worse."

Enishi also hated seing his sister's sad face, so he made her play Mortal Kombat with him. He was surprised that she was able to beat him several times.

Yahiko assured the Sagaras that he'd be fine with Kenji, and left them to comfort each other. He found that teaching the kid some sword moves was a better coping mechanism than he expected - it was like grieving for Kenshin and having a part of Kenshin here with him at the same time. It was also unexpectedly enjoyable when Kenji taught him how to skateboard in return. Then they settled on a rooftop and Yahiko told the boy stories about his father until they both feel asleep under the stars.

Axel, Roxas, and Xion came back for them the following afternoon. "We haven't even caught a hint of anyone else from the wedding," Yahiko said after they'd finished their farewells. "If you give us the 'remote,' we can come back and search some more if it turns out anyone else is missing."

"Sure." Axel handed over the device, then went to the control panel in the machine itself. "Okay, guys - everyone who's going, stand together there on the yellow square."

As she watched them all assembling, Tomoe absently squeezed her brother's hand tighter and tighter until he finally said, "Geez, Sis. You wanna go with 'em or something?"

"Yes," she whispered.

He stared at her for a minute, nonplussed. Then he finally sighed, pulled his hand free, and hugged her. "Then let's go."

"Enishi?" she gasped.

He smiled at her. "Let's go to a new world, Neesan." He was gratified when she hugged him back.

In Meiji Tokyo, the travelers returned to find that a giant Heartless was terrorizing the countryside, its cries audible for miles. "Man, we just got _back_ from work," Axel complained. "I should be chilling with ice cream right now, not putting in unpaid overtime."

"That Heartless sounds sad," Xion said.

"Huh?"

Sanosuke and Yahiko were glad to find that they were joined in the fight by some familiar faces. "Makimachi!"

"MYÔJIN! You're alive?!"

"Yeah!" _'Most of us, at least...'_ "We've got the fox and Kenji, too! Anyone else missing from Sano's wedding other than Kenshin?"

"Huh?!"

It was not the easiest conversation to have while battling a giant monster, but Yahiko eventually learned that everyone was accounted for. Everyone had been worried sick since the disastrous wedding, and it hadn't helped that shadowy monsters had started popping up all over town since then. This Heartless, however, was by far the biggest, and powerful even when faced by the Oniwabanshû.

"Sano!" Axel yelled. "Tell everyone to get lost, you all are just getting in the way!"

"We're not gonna let strangers from another world protect _our_ home while we sit back and do nothing!"

"We have to kill it with a Keyblade, idiot, otherwise it'll just _come back_! Rox and Xi can handle it!"

They did, however, need some help - it was a _very_ strong Heartless. But once it had been worn down enough, the Keybearers pooled their strength and came at it together. "Hiten Mitsurugi-ryuu!" they shouted, both remembering their fallen comrade, "Twilight Destiny Strike!"

"What? That's not a Hiten Mitsurugi-ryuu move," Yahiko muttered.

"Shut up, they're cute," Axel said.

The monster disappeared slowly, leaving a glowing heart shape behind. Instead of fading, however, the light swelled into a blinding flash. When everyone could see again, most of them exclaimed in surprise, shock, joy, or confusion.

Himura Kenshin looked around at them all with warm blue eyes, his ears properly rounded again and his heart beating in his chest. "Oro?"

o.o.o.o.o

The three of them were in Twilight Town a lot later than usual, but ice cream on the clock tower was ice cream on the clock tower. Axel wasn't going to complain.

"I still don't get how Xekshinn turned into a Somebody again," Roxas remarked.

"I think that was his Heartless," said Xion.

"Huh?"

"You know how Xekshinn always seemed sad even when he smiled all the time?"

"He did?"

Axel rolled his eyes affectionately at his friend's typical obliviousness.

"That Heartless cried a lot, too. And it never took those swords out of its chest. I think it wanted us to kill it."

"Why would a Heartless want us to kill it?"

"So it couldn't hurt people anymore."

"Oh."

"I don't think Xekshinn likes hurting people."

"Yeah."

They ate some more ice cream.

"So I guess we'll never see Xekshinn again, huh..."

Axel shrugged. "We can still visit."

"Oh yeah. With the machine you stole from the Itex building, right?"

"I prefer the term 'borrowed without permission'...and besides, they were bad guys."

"They were really strong," Roxas complained. "I don't wanna go to that world again until I won't lose half my HP every time they shoot me."

"They shot you?!" Axel cried in alarm.

"Yeah. It hurt."

"Aaaahhh...!"

"I'm okay, though."

"Guns are really dangerous, Roxas. Be careful around them, okay?"

"Okay."

"Tomoe wanted to stay with Xekshinn in Tokyo even though she's from Twilight Town," Xion said thoughtfully. "Do you think she and Enishi will be happy there, Axel?"

Axel shrugged. "Well, she _is_ with her true love. And Enishi'd been whining about exploring other worlds, anyway; they'll be fine."

"Oooohh - in the stories, when they find their true love and beat the bad guy, they live happily ever after. Are they gonna live happily ever after, Axel?"

He chuckled. "As long as they're with people they love, they'll live happily ever after."

Xion smiled. "Just like us."

Roxas was looking at Axel hopefully, too. Axel grinned at the sunset and murmured, "Yeah. They'll love each other forever, just like us."

o.o.o

Author's Notes: **I did warn RuroKen fans not to read this. If you didn't like the story, just click the Back button and read something else; it's your own fault for ignoring my warning.** Though it's not like I care anymore if you make yourself look like an idiot, since I have zero interest left in the RK fandom. :roll:

Lol, if Aerith can waltz around Kingdom Hearts even though she got killed in Final Fantasy VII, Tomoe can, too. XD :heart:

The Heartless/Nobody joke - it probably shouldn't work because it's only funny in English, and Kenshin's speaking Japanese, but whatever. *sweatdrop*

Perfect as Kenshin is, I think he actually _does_ have plenty of darkness in his heart. Guilt and grief, mostly, but also a bit of pride and shame. Stuff like that.

So, I promised my friend The Layman a giftfic back in the middle of July 2012. I had NO IDEA it would take this long to fulfill my promise, or that it would be this difficult ._. Everything I tried to write for him kept failing for one reason or another, and I started to despair. (I'll hopefully post those fails on Monday, but I need to get the non-fail posted ASAP.)

Finally, finally finally finally, after a whole year, I was _finally_ successful. I drafted most of this fic during a trip I took in June 2013 and I finished it at the beginning of July, though it took me another month to get it all typed. The only way I was able to write RuroKen was by focusing on the only four RK characters who still give me any enjoyment to write about, particularly my beloved Yukishiros. I actually dislike the Sano/Megumi pairing, but included it for my friend's sake; sorry it didn't get more screentime, man. :/ And, lol, Kenshin/Kaoru, a pairing which KK fans and trolls ruined for me by the numerous idiotic anonymous comments they've sent me over the years - first I meant to let Kaoru get eaten by darkness, then I planned to kill her off before the story started, but I didn't even want her name to appear, so I finally decided that Kamiya Kaoru simply does not exist in my headcanon at all. Simplifies things.

Anyway, so after way too many failed ideas, I finally found one that I think decently 'matched' my friend (rather than just being something I like), and which I was _actually capable of finishing_. Lots of KH of course, because it would have been another fail otherwise. And I threw in some Max Ride even though I'm not a big fan, both because my friend likes it and because it was helpful to me in a certain regard. XD That part was more fun to write than I expected (though it was just a one-time thing, I won't be doing anymore MR fanfiction).

...I hope you like the fic, Layman. Even if it was exactly what you had asked for (which this story is _totally not_ XD) and the Best Fanfic Ever, it still wouldn't excuse the wait; but better late than never...maybe...?


	2. Failed giftfics

Failed giftfics for The Layman

**L.g. fail 2**

**A Kingdom Hearts / Rurouni Kenshin crossover fanfic by Raberba girl**

Something was different when Roxas woke up, but he could not figure out what it was. After sitting in bed staring for a while, he finally gave up and shuffled sleepily to the bathroom. Where he saw Lexaeus.

"...Oh. Your hair's spikier than usual, Lekuseusu. And your chin's kind of pointy." Roxas said this in Japanese rather than the English he had actually intended, which surprised him a little. Oh well.

The Silent Hero glanced at him, then away again without speaking. This might have had something to do with the fact that he was brushing his teeth, but then again, maybe not. Roxas shrugged and continued on his way.

In the kitchen, Axel and Xion were putting together rice, miso, eggs, and fish, which was a rather unusual breakfast but for some reason strangely appetizing to Roxas this morning.

"_Ohay__ô__ gozaimasu, Rokusasu-kun_!" Xion called brightly.

"You're speaking Japanese, too," Roxas observed (in Japanese).

"Yeah, something's up today," Axel said (also in Japanese).

"Your hair looks weird today, Akuseru. And Shion looks cuter than usual."

"I _what_?" Xion gasped.

Axel chuckled. "Yeah, you do." He ruffled her hair as she blushed. "Softer, kind of, and your hair's more flowy. Not to mention both you guys' eyes are _even huger than usual_."

"I...I think you look nice, too, Akuseru-san..."

"What's going on?" Roxas asked Axel.

"Try saying something in English."

"Something in English." Roxas frowned. "Something in English," he tried again. Once more, it came out in Japanese. "_I'm saying something in English_," he said determinedly. In Japanese.

Axel grinned a little. "See?"

"Why can't I speak English!?"

"No clue. I'll ask Saikusu when we go check in."

When they got to the Grey Area, Larxene was screaming (in Japanese) for Demyx to shut up, but of course he was ignoring her and kept right on strumming and singing, _"Shitaaru ga suki da, shitaaru ga suki da, shitaaru ga suki da, suki da, dokoka iku, oheyo!"_

"Geez, that song is annoying enough in English," Axel grumbled.

Vexen was yelling at the smirking Xigbar, "I'm telling you, it _wasn't my fault_ this time!" Zexion had apparently roped Luxord into helping him compare data feeds ("No, _leave_ the dice there, you're supposed to be holding my place on those charts"), and a fed-up (and rather girly-looking) Saïx was growling at Xaldin, "We _can't_ call a meeting until we have more to actually report on, which is why everyone is doing recon today."

"The issue," Xaldin rumbled, "is that you're wasting resources and thus slowing down the process-"

"I'm not going to fling lone individuals into such a complete unknown and risk them getting killed-"

"D'aww, Sai-kun, you care," Axel laughed.

Saïx glared. "If anyone gets lost, you're the one who'll pick up the slack. Where have you been?"

"Eating breakfast. Which I'm going to guess you were freaking out too much to bother with today; HAH, who's the 'irresponsible anorexic' now, huh?"

"I don't have time for your nonsense. We've somehow ended up translated into an alternate universe, and have not yet discovered how to set things right. Vikusen and Zekushion have managed to provide us with a few preliminary details. You, Akuseru, are to accompany the Keybearers to Meiji Tôkyô and collect as much information on that world as you possibly can."

"Hai, hai," Axel sighed, adding in a very quiet grumble, "Aiza wouldn't have been too busy to banter..." He glanced at the very curious Roxas and Xion. "Never mind. Let's go, kiddos."

As they were prepping their panel arrangements and then heading into the dark corridor, they heard Saïx telling the others, "Demikkusu, cease at once, today is not one to be wasting. I need you and Lakushiinu at Seiso Academy-"

"Whaaaat?"

"I am NOT going on a mission with _him_!"

"Or I could send you to Neo Crystal Tôkyô," Saïx threatened.

"Eep!"

"NO!"

"We'll be good!"

"Hmph. To continue: Vikusen and Lukusôdo, I'm sending you to Amestris; and Zekushion, you will be accompanying Maaluusha to Ouran Academy..."

The dark corridor ended in a pretty world close to the sort of old-fashioned civilization Roxas had seen in some parts of the Land of Dragons, or an un-sandy and not-as-unbearably-hot version of Agrabah. "I think our coats stand out more than usual here..."

"Vikusen keeps saying stuff about it being a stealth operation," Xion said, "but I don't think it's very stealthy to go around in these big black coats when no one else is."

"You have a point," Axel agreed. "You wanna go steal someone's laundry?"

"What?"

"No!"

"Guess we're stuck being sore thumbs, then."

Roxas rummaged through his backpack until he found the notebook he used for recon missions, and started taking notes. "No snow, so it's not winter; grass is still green so it's not dead of summer; ummm..."

"We don't have to do the analyzing part right now, do we?" Xion ventured. "We can wait 'til the end to try to make it mean something..."

"Yeah."

They wandered through town, earning weird looks and taking more notes. Someone tried to pick Xion's pocket at one point - she whipped out her Keyblade and Strike Raided him into dropping the handful of munny before he got far. After that, the townspeople seemed to warily keep their distance except a group of random thugs who stepped into their way to pick a fight. They only made it about a quarter of the way through their preliminary arrogant boasting before Axel got bored and casually Flip-Footed them.

The thugs didn't realize what had happened until they charged at him and found themselves running in the opposite direction. Roxas and Xion were nearly crying with laughter as the thugs first furiously, then with growing confusion and horror, kept trying to stab Axel with illegal blades and even just straight-out punching him, but every single one of their movements were reversed.

"Had enough?" the Flurry of Dancing Flames asked cheerfully. "Because we can actually fight if you want, but I'd hate to have to kill you in front of the kids here..." He couldn't help glancing at said kids to make sure they assumed he was joking (they did).

The thugs yelled for him to quit playing dirty and fight like a man.

"Oh, _he's_ the one fighting dirty?" an annoyed young voice piped up. Roxas and Xion watched curiously as a boy, younger than them and with hair that was spiky but less wild than Roxas's, pushed through the crowd and faced the thugs with a strong stance.

"Butt out, kid," one of the thugs started to growl, but then another elbowed him uneasily.

"Oi...it's that Myôjin punk."

"What?" Thug #1 said in irritation.

"The one who's always hanging out at..._That_ Dôjô."

The whole group of thugs suddenly looked as if the wind had dropped out of their sails.

"Forget Kenshin," the boy snapped. "_I_ could take on all four of you losers by myself.

_*permanently incomplete*_

Author's Notes: Sorry if I failed at translating Dr. Bombay's "My Sitar" into Japanese... *sweatdrop*

Seiso Academy is the school where the music-heavy series _La Corda d'Oro_ takes place.

Marluxia would totally fit in at Ouran. XD XD

xXxXxXxXxXx

**L.g. fail 5**

**A Maximum Ride fanfic by Raberba girl**

Okay, THIS is why I never let the boys (or Angel) go grocery shopping.

"What _exactly_ do you think is even the tiniest bit nutritional about _this_?" I asked, waving the bag of cheese puffs. I mean,

_*permanently incomplete*_

xXxXxXxXxXx

**L.g. fail 6**

**A Rurouni Kenshin / Kingdom Hearts crossover fanfic by Raberba girl**

Summary: Rurouni Kenshin characters written into the plot of _Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days_.

o.o.o

The boy woke up.

He sat there for a while, blinking around at the silvery-white room. Then he slowly got out of bed and stood up. _'Where...am I...?'_ A pause. _'_Who_ am I?'_ He couldn't remember. A boy, that's all he knew. And...pain...green...voices...a salty sweet taste...and the sun...that was it.

"..." He had the feeling he should be more worried about his failure to remember, but he didn't actually care much about anything right now.

The boy finally left the room and wandered around until he reached a room with other people in it. All of them wore black coats, just like he did.

The woman with the most unzipped zipper wrinkled her nose when she saw the boy. "Eww...it's awake."

"Hmph." The man with hair like a bamboo curtain glanced at the boy in shrewd assessment, then away again in disinterest.

"Good morning, Number XIII," the woman at the head of the room said politely.

The red-haired man standing by the window near her turned to face the boy and smiled. "It is good to see you awake, Yahiko, that it is."

The boy's brow furrowed a little. "Ya...hiko...?"

"He doesn't even remember his own name," the unzipped woman grumbled.

The lady at the front laid her hand gently on Yahiko's head. Her voice was quiet as she said, "The Superior told us that he named the boy himself only seven days ago, and that the child has been mostly unconscious in the meantime. His sense of self-awareness is still developing."

"Not a child," Yahiko managed to protest in a mumble.

The red-haired man smiled. There was something familiar about that smile. And something sad about it, too. "No one here is a child, it is true."

"Do you think he'll be able to attend the meeting?" the woman asked him in a low voice.

"We shall bring him along and see. This one will be happy to take charge of him, Tomoe."

"Thank you, Himura-san." She started to turn back to her clipboard, meaning to mark the attendance sheet, but she caught the way Kenshin was looking at her. "What is it?"

"It makes this one uneasy to hear such an address from you," he said softly.

_*permanently incomplete*_

Author's Notes: The "unzipped woman"/Larxene was Yumi. :p

Kenshin meant that he doesn't like hearing Tomoe use honorifics for him. And seeing as how AkuSai is my OTP, and their roles are being played by my favorite romance pairing ever, there would obviously have been lots of Kenshin/Tomoe in this. XD

xXxXxXxXxXx

**L.g. fail 7**

**A Kingdom Hearts / Rurouni Kenshin crossover fanfic by Raberba girl**

Axel paused in the middle of the dark street, listening to the very faint sound of distant screams. His brow furrowed, but just as he was making up his mind to go investigate, he was startled by a high-pitched shriek bursting out behind him. "Hitokiri Battousai!"

"What the-?!" Axel turned to find an adorable young girl, about thirteen or fourteen years old, glaring at him with ferocity to rival a hawk's. Her grip on the weapon pointed at him was firm and experienced, despite her youth and small stature.

"I will _not_ let you kill another soul! Surrender NOW, murderer!"

"...What the freak." Somehow, the raging death threats made her even cuter. "Does your mom know you're breaking curfew?"

She gasped as if injured. "You heartless-! _Thunder_!"

Axel, distracted by trying to figure out why the term 'heartless' was giving him a vague sense of déjà vu, dodged a bit too slowly, and yelped as a bolt of lightning sizzled through him. "You little brat! You don't know who you're messing with, do you." He flung out his arms to summon a ring of fire, and then his flaming...reversed-edge katana? What?

Axel stared at the chakrams he held and thought that there was something very wrong here. He had battled through the Bakumatsu with a samurai's blade, nothing like these weapons. He didn't remember ever seeing them in his life. Yet they fit in his palms as if he'd been born holding them, and he knew exactly what to do with them...

"I don't care who you are." The fire in the girl's eyes had faded, leaving a grim resolve. Her grip on the giant gold and silver key had not wavered. "I _will_ stop you, Battousai."

"Stop me from _what_?" He'd just walked into this town, and hadn't done a thing other than rest for a little while.

The girl suddenly lifted her head. Axel realized that the cries were closer - she must have heard them.

"What's happening over there?" she demanded.

"As if I'd know!"

"Hmph. You stay put, Battousai!" She cast an ice spell at him and then took off in the direction of the commotion.

Axel easily melted the level 1 ice trapping his feet and then glanced in the direction his opponent had raced. "Lively town, huh..." He shook his head, then dismissed his weapons and loped off toward the cries, wondering (as always) why it felt like there was a faster way to travel that he'd forgotten.

o.o.o.o.o

Sanosuke followed the magic creepy tunnel and found himself in the sleepy sunny world. To be more precise, in the woods outside the mansion. "Sooo...is this another mission, or...?"

No answer from the spiky-haired kid, who just stood there silently with his head bowed, swaying a little. "...You got a name, at least?"

"..."

"...Well, whatever. Let's call you Yahiko. You look like a Yahiko to me."

"..."

"...Hm. Kenshin likes to hang out here, doesn't he? Maybe he'll know what to do with you." Sanosuke didn't like the idea of dragging an unprotected zombie kid through the creepy magic tunnels, so they went the long way, through town and up the steps until they reached the top of the clock tower. Sanosuke soon got impatient with the kid's zombie pace and ended up carrying him. "Yo, Kenshin."

The red-haired assassin looked up and smiled at him. "Hello, Sano."

"Heh, I shouldn't let you get away with callin' your boss nicknames..." He sat the kid down beside Kenshin. There was a long pause.

"Would you like to stay?" Kenshin asked half-heartedly, already knowing the response.

"I don't think I should, but..." Sanosuke suddenly frowned and plopped down on Kenshin's other side. There was another pause.

Then both men sighed. "How can something feel totally right and totally wrong at the same time?"

"This one wishes he knew... So we shall see each other at the next meeting, then?"

"Guess so." Sanosuke hopped back to his feet. "See you later, Kenshin."

"See you later, Sano."

"By the way, I've been calling him Yahiko."

"All right."

"I guess I can ask around and see if his family here is looking for him." It was a more appealing prospect than going to visit the creepy heart-shaped moon. It already invaded his thoughts enough, he didn't need to go _asking_ it things.

"That sounds like a good idea, that it does." When they were alone, Kenshin smiled down at the boy. "Hello, young one."

"Not a 'young one,'" the boy mumbled.

"Of course. Yahiko. Are you satisfied with that name?"

"..."

"...This one suffers from a strange compulsion to buy sea-salt ice cream that he has little taste for. Would you like to have this, instead?"

Yahiko did not speak again that entire afternoon, but he did eat the entire ice cream bar Kenshin offered him, and licked the sweet salt off his fingers afterward.

o.o.o.o.o

"Fang! For the last time, _put_ the ninja comics down, and enough with the video games, Gazzy."

"They're samurai, not ninja," Fang said, frowning at me over the top edge of the comic book. "Kenshin's not even a samurai, anyway."

"Whatever. Gasman, let's _go_!"

"Five more minutes!" he cried frantically. "I've almost beat this stupid Ruler of the Sky!"

"Whatever. Nudge found some new info, and we need you guys' help..."

_*permanently incomplete*_

Author's Notes: Xion got upset at Axel because her mother passed away, and she mistakenly thought he was taunting her about it. Sanosuke was playing Xemnas's role, since I _could not_ think of anything better for him. *sweatdrop* And the AkuShi in this would have been platonic.

xXxXxXxXxXx

Authors Notes: Although I'm never going to finish these stories as originally intended, I still might play around with or reuse some ideas I had for them; I dunno.

In the summer of 2012, I took it into my head to write giftfics for my seven best friends at the time (I now have an eighth one XD), and Layman was second on my priority list because I've known him the second-longest. Yet his fic ended up being the penultimate one to be posted - it took me _eight tries_ and an entire year before I was finally successful ._. I still have no idea why it was so difficult; even my aversion to writing for RK doesn't fully account for it.

The original request was for a canon-based Rurouni Kenshin humor fic, with a specific Kingdom Hearts scene as an epilogue. It failed before I even started writing it, partially because I hate writing for RuroKen and partially because, even when I _did_ love writing RK, almost every single one of my stories was AU. I just don't feel comfortable writing a period piece based on real history, I don't know enough about it.

The second try was a Kingdom Hearts / Rurouni Kenshin crossover, since we both figured I'd do better with my beloved KH. So I started writing, and did all right through the KH opening, but almost as soon as it came time to write some RK stuff, I got writer's block. X'D Once again thwarted by Writing For RK Sucks + I Have No Clue What I'm Talking About.

The third and fourth tries are not posted here, since I actually like them enough to try to eventually (likely in the faaaar future...) finish them. The problem with those was that they felt too much like R. girl Fics, not Fics R. girl Wrote For Layman. One is canon-based AkuSaiRokuShi, the other is AU AkuSaiJazRokuShi, both non-crossover KH.

The fifth try was when it occurred to me to take a totally different approach and write a Maximum Ride fic for Layman, so I asked him for ideas. They were good ideas, but unfortunately, I wrote about two lines before realizing that I can't write MR fanfiction. XD

The sixth and seventh tries were KH/RK crossovers again. I wanted to write the RK characters into the KH Days plot; and I also tried writing both sets of characters into each other's plots (though in this case, the switch was actually in-universe, and they would have figured things out and fixed everything by the end). I think both of those failed because I realized I wouldn't have the time, motivation, or patience to make it through the entire plot. *sweatdrop* And they both would have been a bit lame as giftfics, anyway.

The eighth and only successful try came out of nowhere, after I'd given up and was considering a story for _The Light In Their Eyes_. I'm not even sure what inspired the idea - I _think_ I was considering that Layman likes Sano/Megumi, and I thought of a wedding, and making it interesting by having it invaded by monsters or something, and of course my thoughts jumped pretty quickly to Heartless, and then the rest of the plot became obvious. I started the story without high hopes, and was pretty surprised both when it flowed well, and when I ACTUALLY FINISHED IT. Yaaaayyy, success at last. X3


End file.
